Stevie Ray Vaughan's "Testify" Source: Jimi Hendrix's Original Version with The Isley Brothers
The idea of Stevie Ray Vaughan covering a funky song by the great R&B band the Isley Brothers might seem bizarre until you consider that rhythm and blues was a big part of the Double Trouble playbook.
Besides, his choice of “Testify” makes perfect sense when you realize the guitarist on the Isleys' original 1964 version was none other than his hero, Jimi Hendrix.
More a tip of the hat than a cover, Vaughan pays respects to Hendrix’s original opening riff before ditching the rest of the song and heading into parts unknown. It’s just as well. “Testify” wasn’t very good in the first place, and Vaughan carves a much more exciting path while ripping a total of seven—count ’em, seven—electrifying solos, each more intense than the one before it.
But what really makes this one of Vaughan’s very best performances is the variety of sounds he gets by using his wah pedal to subtly color his sound, as it gradually shifts from silky smooth to full-on banshee wail.
Below, check out the original 1964 Isley Brothers version of "Testify," featuring Hendrix on guitar, followed by Vaughan's fully instrumental version recorded live in Japan in the mid-Eighties.
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A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away Brad was the editor of Guitar World from 1990 to 2015. Since his departure he has authored Eruption: Conversations with Eddie Van Halen, Light & Shade: Conversations with Jimmy Page and Play it Loud: An Epic History of the Style, Sound & Revolution of the Electric Guitar, which was the inspiration for the Play It Loud exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City in 2019.

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